Reflections

If you know me at all, you know that I am inspired by the beauty God created here on earth. Watching a sunset or marveling at the colors of the flowers in my garden can make me lose track of time. To me, the beauty I see around me every day is a reflection of God’s power and incredible artistry.

I got to thinking about why God provided us with all the colors and textures and scents of creation. Wouldn’t it have been easier to just stick with a single color palate or shape or species rather than having so many? But I realized that for me, the colors I see, the scent of flowers I smell and the soft rustling of leaves in the trees all cause me to pause what I’m doing and thank God for His creation. The brighter the color or stronger the scent will bring my hurried day to a complete standstill! His creation appears as a reflection of who He is and His incredible love for me and I simply can’t ignore it.

There are many things that reflect images. A mirror reflects the image in front of it. A smooth lake reflects the hills and trees around it. The sky reflects the sun, moon and stars above it. The Holy Spirit in us reflects God’s love and His very nature to the world.

As much as God’s creation fills my heart with joy and causes me to be reminded of Him and how much He loves me, there is more that He wants from me. God wants me to be a reflection of who He is to a hurting and lost world. I need to do more than just soak up what He shows me and teaches me. I have to share what I know with others. The best way, in fact the only way, to do that is to really know who He is.

By spending time in my bible, meditating on the words I find there and asking God to use me, I’m becoming more of a reflection of what He has created me to be. As a believer and follower of Jesus, I am no longer simply part of His creation, I am a reflection of who He is. I am filled with His Holy Spirit and when you’re filled with something so powerful you can’t help but have it overflow and spill all over everything you do and everyone you come into contact with!

I have a pretty simple philosophy that I try to put into practice every day: I want to know more and more about Jesus so I can better reflect Him in every way. It’s not something I have to do on my own, by my own power and abilities. If it were, I’m afraid I’d fall completely short and not a single person I come into contact with would want anything to do with that Jesus!

The apostle Paul wrote about it so eloquently in his letter to the Corinthians. Its not me doing the reflecting, it’s the Holy Spirit within me that allows others to see the reflection of Jesus in my life. And that’s what I desire more than anything: for the veil of spiritual blindness to be ripped away and for the reflection of a loving and faithful Father to be reflected by my life as I become more and more like my Jesus!

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like Him as we are changed into His glorious image.

– 2 Corinthians 3:16-18